1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of data processing systems. More particularly, this invention relates to on-access malware scanning, such as for example scanning for the presence of a computer virus within a computer file which it is desired to access at the time at which the access request to that file is made.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known to provide on-access malware scanners, such as those produced by Network Associates, Inc. A problem that arises with such scanners is that as the complexity of the files to be scanned increases then the time required for the scanning to complete becomes disadvantageously large. This is particularly important in relation to an on-access scanner as the scanning must complete before the user is granted access to the file concerned and accordingly excessive delays are highly visible to a user and in the case of devices, such as PDAs, with low computing power.